Electric-lighting apparatus for railroad-cars.



No. 645,2l6. Patented Mar. l3, I900. W. F. RICHARDS. ELECTRIC LIGHTING APPARATUS FOR RAILROAD CARS.

(Application filed Nov. 16, 1899.)

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UNIT D STATES.

PATENT OFFICE.

'WILLARD F. RICHARDS, OF BUFFALO, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO CHARLES M. GOULD, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

ELECTRIC-LIGHTING APPARATUS FOR RAILROAD-CARS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 645,216, dated March 13, 1900.

Application file November 16, 1899. Serial No. 737,154. (No model.)

To to whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, WILLARD F. Rronauns, a citizen of the United States, residing at Buffalo, in the county of Erie and State of New York, have invented a new and useful lm provement in Electric-Lighting Apparatus for Railroad-Cars, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to an electric-lighting apparatus for railroad-cars in which the dynamo is driven from the car-axle by a belt and the dynamo is so suspended that it is movable toward and from the car-axle and tends by its weight to move from the caraxle, thereby tightening the belt, while an excessive speed of the belt tends to draw the dynamo toward the car-axle, thereby slackening the belt. In this manner anexcessive speed of the car-axle is neutralized and a practically-uniform normal speed of the dynamo is maintained. In an apparatus of this kind the dynamo is usually suspended by links from the car-bottom, and adjusting devices have been applied to these links for regulating the position of the dynamo and the tension of the belt-as, for instance, in Letters Patent No. 602,182, dated April 12, 1898, granted to Preston and Gill, and in Letters Patent No. 604,081, dated May 17, 1898,

granted to myself. When the adjustment is applied to the suspension-links, the angle of the latter is changed in shifting the dynamo, and the gravity action of thedyuamo is thereby correspondingly changed.

The object of my invention is to construct the suspension devices in such manner that the position of the dynamo can be shifted toward and from the driving-axle for taking up slack in the belt, adjusting the tension of the belt, replacing a worn belt by a new belt which is slightly shorter or longer, or for other purposes without affecting the angle of the suspension-links or the gravity action of the dynamo.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a sectional side elevation of a dynamo suspended by my improved suspension device. Fig. 2 is an end elevation of the dynamo and suspension device viewed from the left in Fig. 1. Fig. 8 is a cross-section of the adjustable suspension-carriage, on an enlarged scale, in line 3 3, Fig. 4. Fig. 4 is a top plan view of the suspension device. Fig. 5 is a detached bottom plan view of the suspensioncarriage withthe links in section.

Like letters ofreference refer to like parts in the several figures.

A represents the bottom frame of the car, B the dynamo suspended below the same, and O the car-axle, from which the dynamo is driven by a belt D and pulleys E E, secured, respectively, to the car axle and the dynamoshaft.

G represents a carriage from which the dy nam'o is suspended by inclined links H, which are arranged at their lower ends nearer the driving-axle than at their upper ends, whereby the weight of the dynamo is caused to tighten the driving-belt. The links are pivoted at their upper ends to the carriage by transverse pivot-bolts h, which pass through the bifurcated lugs h of the carriage, in which the upper ends of the links play. The pivot bolts are preferably secured in these lugs by cotter-pins 7?, so that the parts can be readily assembled or separated. This carriage is mounted in any suitable manner so as to be adjustable toward and from the driving-axle. As shown in the drawings, the carriage is mounted for this purpose by guide-sleeves 9 upon two horizontal longitudinal guide-bars I. The latter are supported underneath the bottom frame of the car by cross-bars K and clamping sleeves K K or other suitable means. This carriage is adjusted toward and from the driving-axle by any suitable mechanismforinstance, as sl10wn,byahorizontal screw L, which engages in an internallythreaded lug M at the front end of the car riage and turns in a lug N, in which it is held against longitudinal movement. The lug N can be formed on the under side of one of the front clamping-sleeves K, as shown. This adjusting-screw can be turned from the interior of the car by an upright shaft 0, which is geared at its lower end with the adj ustingscrew by bevel-gears P P and which terminates in the car-floor in a square end, to which a wrench can be applied. This upright shaft is journaled'in a lug Q, which is formed on the front side of the same clamping-sleeve K on which the lug N is formed.

IOO

By shifting the carriage on its guidcways toward or from the driving-axle the position of the dynamo is adjusted as may be necessary to properly tighten the belt or for adj usting the position of the dynamo to the length of the belt., Such adjustment does not necessarily change the angular or inelin ed position of the suspension-links, as the latter move with the carriage. It is therefore possible to change the position of the dynamo for receiving a shorter or longer belt or for taking up the stretch of the belt without changing the tension of the belt or the gravity action of the dynamo. worn belt by a new one, the carriage is moved toward the driving-axle until the links hang perpendicularly, when the belt is loose and can be easily removed and be replaced by a new belt. Any desired range of adjustment can be providedby making the guideways and the adj usting-screw of the desired length.

I claim as my invention 1. The combination with the driving-axle, a driving-pulley mounted thereon and a driving-belt, of a carriage which is adjustable toward and from the driving-axle, suspensionlinks pivoted to said carriage, and a dynamo When it is desired to replace a underneath the car-frame, a carriage movably mounted on said guideways, suspension-links pivoted to said carriage, a dynamo supported by said links and provided with a belt-pulley, and a longitudinal adjusting-screw engaging Withsaid carriage, substantially as set' forth.

lVitness my hand this 13th day of November, 1899.

\VILLARD F. RICHARDS.

Witnesses:

JNo. J. BONNER, CARL F. GEYEl-t. 

